海角大神

We can鈥檛 think of a better way to explore New York 鈥� or any city for that matter 鈥� than by way of a self-conducted literary tour, as book critic Dwight Garner recently did, with energy and exuberance, for The New York Times.

Spread across the pages of the Sunday in tantalizing detail was Garner鈥檚 assignment in 鈥淎 Critic鈥檚 Tour of Literary Manhattan鈥�: to 鈥渃risscross the island for a few days鈥� to determine whether Manhattan鈥檚 literary life, as novelist Gary Shteyngart once lamented, was fading away.

鈥淚 wanted to take in Manhattan as a literary tourist,鈥� writes Garner, once senior editor of The New York Times Book Review. 鈥淚 wanted to touch base with haunts old and new. I wanted to see if there is still, for a certain kind of bibliophilic seeker, as Simone de Beauvoir put it, 鈥榮omething in the New York air that makes sleep useless.鈥欌�澛�

Literary Manhattan, Garner determined after speaking with several writers and editors, 鈥渄oesn鈥檛 seem to have the wattage it once did.鈥� The culprits? The smoking ban was a 鈥渄eath knell鈥� for the drawn-out hang-outs critical to literary life; the Internet obviated some writers鈥� need for companionship and consolation; creative energy has largely gone into food, where indie types are churning out artisanal pickles, chocolates, and beers, rather than literary works; and the bookish crowd, in large part, has dispersed into Brooklyn, where folks can actually eke out a life on a writer鈥檚 pay.

Nonetheless, Manhattan鈥檚 book culture remains vibrant, eclectic, and enduring, if somewhat leaner and occasionally regrettably modernized.

For his enviable assignment, Garner installed himself at the Algonquin, 鈥渢he Midtown hotel where Dorothy Parker, Alexander Woollcott and others once traded juniper-infused barbs, and used it as a launching pad to crisscross the island for a few days...鈥澛�

Among his stops: Caf茅 Loup, a 鈥済enteel but unpretentious West Village bistro鈥� that editor of the Paris Review Lorin Stein calls 鈥渢he closest thing I know of to a writer鈥檚 hangout in the old-fashioned sense鈥�; Nuyorican Poets Caf茅, a 鈥渨arm and jubilant鈥� haunt on the Lower East Side where raucous poetry slams are alive and well; KGB Bar, 鈥渁 dark, intimate Soviet-themed... space鈥� where cult novelist Kris Saknussemm 鈥渟oloed like a jazz master鈥� while 鈥渄eclaiming bits of his new autobiographical book, 鈥楽ea Monkeys鈥欌��; and Lolita in SoHo, where 鈥渢he women looked like extras from an episode of Lena Dunham鈥檚 HBO series, 鈥�Girls,鈥欌�� and the only readers were carrying Kindles. 鈥淲hen it鈥檚 no longer possible to tell what attractive young women are reading,鈥� writes Garner, 鈥減art of the romance of Manhattan is gone.鈥�

And while Garner finds the Algonquin, where 鈥淒o Not Disturb鈥� signs read, 鈥淨uiet Please: Writing the Great American Novel,鈥� 鈥渁 bit chilly and corporate,鈥� literary visitors to New York have other options. There鈥檚 the 鈥渟leek and geeky鈥� Madison Ave. Library Hotel, not far from the New York Public Library, where the floors are categorized according to the Dewey Decimal System and each of the 60 rooms contains a set of books 鈥渄evoted to a topic within that category.鈥澛�

(Those with deeper pockets shelve their luggage at the new NoMad Hotel, housed in a turn-of-the-century Beaux-Arts building where the cocktail lounge-cum-library features 鈥渢wo vaulting stories of lighted bookcases connected by a spiral staircase imported from the South of France.鈥�)

And though the city has far fewer bookstores than it once did (Book Row, along Fourth Ave., housed some three-dozen used bookstores before the last one closed in 1988), 鈥渢he city鈥檚 survivors are beautiful to behold,鈥� says Garner.

The highlights: Bauman Rare Books in Midtown, a temple to rare volumes, dearly priced; the small and expertly curated 192 Books in Chelsea; the brilliantly-named Unoppressive Non-Imperialist Bargain Books in the West Village; and the charitable Housing Works Bookstore Caf茅 in SoHo. Garner鈥檚 favorites? St. Mark鈥檚 Bookshop on the Lower East Side, where you go 鈥渨hen you need a reminder that the world鈥檚 literary culture is still big and weird and vibrant,鈥� and The Strand, where 鈥淚t鈥檚 worth flying in from London simply to browse the stacks.鈥�

By the end of his literary tour, writes Garner, 鈥淚 was smitten all over again.鈥�

So are we. We reveled in Garner鈥檚 word-fueled romp through Manhattan, even more so after discovering that not only is literary Manhattan is alive and well, but that we can play a role in enriching literary cultures of cities across the nation if we engage in literary tours in our own cities. Visiting precious used bookshops, quirky indies, prized historic sites, famous scenes and settings with literary associations, and beloved literary hangouts, from trendy cafes to sober libraries to underground dives 鈥� what a wonderful way to discover a city and to encourage vibrant literary cultures in cities and towns across the country. We can鈥檛 wait to plan our own literary tour.

Husna Haq is a Monitor correspondent.